In a brazen act of mass theft, nearly 70 individuals targeted a 76 gas station on Oakland's Hegenberger Road in the early hours yesterday, in what is being described as a flash mob robbery. As reported by KTVU, the swarm of perpetrators, roughly 70 strong, initiated their raid around 4 a.m., resulting in substantial losses estimated to be around $100,000. Worth note is the fact that KRON4 put the number of suspects a bit lower, yet still at a staggering 40 to 50 people. The owner, Sam Mardaie, recounted that the turmoil persisted for approximately 40 minutes.
During the incident, surveillance footage captured individuals hastily stealing items—snatching drinks from refrigerators and stowing away merchandise in boxes that seemingly belonged to the store itself. It was a chaotic scene, with some of the robbers even climbing over the counter to access more goods. Sam Mardaie voiced his dismay to NBC Bay Area, stating, "They got away with it, they were here for 40 minutes. You could tear a whole city down in 40 minutes," and emphasized the emotional toll of the event, "Every time I think about it, the more it hurts."
The store was being manned by two employees when the robbers broke in, and according to Mardaie, they were threatened. The owner highlighted the grueling experience, saying, as per KTVU, "This is the hardest thing you could ever go through…especially if you've been put in sweat and tears day in and day out". Despite the severity of the situation, a police response was notably delayed. Store owners informed KTVU that an officer did not arrive on scene until six hours after the Oakland police received their call for help.
Initially, Oakland police had been responding to a sideshow involving over 100 vehicles near the airport, which could help to explain the delay in addressing the robbery. The burglary was first categorized as a Priority 2—suggesting that no suspects were present on the scene, and thus, the crime could be reported online. Nonetheless, after viewing the video evidence, authorities escalated the burglary to a Priority 1 and eventually dispatched an officer. An outcry for improved public safety resources and quicker response times has been echoed by District 7 City Councilmember Treva Reid, who continues to fight for these measures in her community and has called upon Mayor Sheng Thao to prioritize the needs of her district, according to KTVU.
